Realizing that the Terrace Avenue
area was in a serious decline due to an increasing number of complaints of drug
sale activity, Chief of Police James Russo contacted the New York State Attorney
General's Office for assistance in alleviating this problem.

Terrace Avenue is a block-long
area consisting of several high-rise housing projects. There are approximately
900 apartments in this one-block stretch of Hempstead which borders commercial
property on one side and single family, higher income residences on the other.
It is estimated that there are over 5,000 people living in this densely
populated area. Small violations such as loitering, illegal parking and drinking
alcohol in public quickly opened the door to other more serious crimes such as
assaults, robberies and drug sales. Several of the building's owners had allowed
their buildings to fall into a state of decay. Lack of physical security, such
as inoperable front doors and broken locks, allowed trespassers, including drug
dealers and their customers, to roam freely through the buildings.

In an effort to break the cycle
of arrests, the New York State Attorney General instituted a lawsuit against the
owners of these buildings, forcing them to make improvements and evict
drug-dealing residents or face seizure and condemnation of their properties.
While the Hempstead Police Department Investigations Unit conducted numerous
undercover anti-drug operations to arrest the dealers, uniformed police officers
on foot patrol were assigned to ensure the dealers being arrested were not
replaced by others. Shortly thereafter, the Attorney General, successful in his
suit, had the court order the landlords to improve the conditions of the
buildings and hire uniformed security officers to patrol the properties.

Today the foot patrols continue
on Terrace Avenue, fostering good relations between the law-- abiding citizens
and members of the Police Department. Additionally, programs have been
instituted wherein members of the Police Department attend the residents'
monthly tenant association meetings and solve any law enforcement problems that
might arise.